India's Got Latent Row: When Celeb Talks Became Too Hot To Handle

Ranveer Allhabadia's controversial comment has sparked a debate on freedom of speech and dark comedy. Deepika Padukone and Hardik Pandya have also faced backlash for their comments on a talk show.

India's Got Latent is hosted by stand-up comedian Samay Raina.

Source : Instagram

YouTuber Ranveer Allhabadia remains the top searched topic on search engine sites, but not for his podcasts featuring his eternal curiosity on the subject of "death". This time, it is the award-winning YouTuber's comment on a sensitive subject which led to a fresh debate on freedom of speech and drew attention to the thin line between vulgarity and apparent "dark comedy".

Allhabadia appeared as a guest on Samay Raina-hosted roast show India's Got Latent where he asked a contestant, "Would you rather watch your parents have sex every day for the rest of your life or join in once to make it stop forever?"

As short clips from the episodes circulated on social media, the YouTuber was called out and soon FIRs were registered against him and Raina in Mumbai and Guwahati. The episode was subsequently taken down from YouTube. 

Allahbadia, who enjoys a massive fanbase on YouTube and Instagram, has interviewed guests ranging from Bollywood A-listers to ministers like S Jaishankar, Piyush Goyal and Smriti Irani.

This is not the first time that a celebrity has found themselves in soup because of their take on "controversial" subjects. From actor Deepika Padukone to cricketers Hardik Pandya And KL Rahul, "objectionable" comments by celebs have triggered extreme reactions from people several times in the past. 

Deepika Padukone's Koffee With Karan Episode

The 'Piku' actress revealed that during their initial dating days, they were still allowed to see other people but she would always go back to him.

"I was single and he just came out of the relationship. I wanted to be single for a while because I had come out of a couple of difficult relationships," she said. 

The actress, who welcomed a baby girl last year, went on to say there was no "commitment as such". "Until he proposed to me, there was no commitment as such." Ranveer then mentioned that he knew Deepika was "the one" within six months. 

The couple were massively trolled over the comments and the issue became so big that the show host had to intervene.

Hardik Pandya And KL Rahul 'Koffee With Karan' Controversy

The show was marred by another controversy when the cricketer stars Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul appeared in its sixth season back in 2019. The duo smelt the coffee for their "sexist" comments as they talked about their relationships, crushes, favourite movies, actors and actresses.

While Rahul remained careful with his words, Pandya boasted about hooking up with multiple women and even spoke about how open he is with his parents.

Pandya and Rahul faced repercussions as they were suspended by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and ousted from a three-match ODI series against Australia. BCCI also fined them ₹20 lakh each. Pandya received a further setback when Gillette terminated its contract with him. 

The matter reached the court and the streaming platform Disney-Hotstar had to pull down the episode.

Samay Raina And Kusha Kapila Roast Row

Raina made a controversial remark on actor Kusha Kapila even before he started India's Got Latent. Kusha participated in a Pretty Good Roast Show Season 1 roasting session alongside other comedians when Raina cracked jokes targeting her marriage and divorce from her ex-husband Zorawar Singh.

Raina joked in Hindi, "Kusha has a female dog, who stays with her half the time, and during the other half, remains happy. Just give the dog to Zorawar. Let him have at least one b**ch in his life."

Kapila blocked the stand-up comedian on social media soon after the episode was out. She wrote, "Jokes weren’t shared beforehand (as is done in all roast formats in the West), so I had no idea what was in store for me." 

India's Got Latent Judges' Name

The show is hosted and judged by Samay Raina and show producer Balraj Singh Ghai is often present in the judge's panel. The other judges change in every episode as per the show format. Actors Bharti Singh, Rakhi Sawant, Uoorfi Javed, and Poonam Pandey were judges in recent episodes of the roast show.